A Popsicle kind of day...

Summer in Florida are not only hot, but sticky. Humidity can be 112% which means breaking a sweat between the house and the car.

MMMmmm...popsicles are great on days like these. I like banana best. It's the little things that get us through...

Sunday! Sleep, eat and coffee

Just that kind of day...

Land sharks, no sandbar sharks

Today was an odd day! We had a great lunch at Lulu's at Homeport Marina in Gulf Shores (after some shopping) and then walked on the Gulf States Pier. The fisherman at the end of the pier had caught 3 sandbar sharks and we saw 2 hammerhead sharks! It was crazy!

There was also a large staging area nearby for oil clean up. Tons of heavy equipment, tents, men in orange vests and stacks of supplies. No oil on the pretty beach right now! The sharks are safe..for now..

a view

Twiggy in the 60's. Changing the standards of what women should be like. Sad?

This is the image of woman mid century. Voluptuous curves and softness represented a beautiful woman.

Fashion by region..a mystery

Fashion should be so simple as 40 years ago. People then wore suits and dresses when traveling by air. Now it's flip flops and board shorts. Living in Birmingham, we all dressed for church-there was no casual service. Little girls wore big bows in their hair and little boys dressed like Little Lord Fontleroy.

Gulf Coast living is easier where fashion is concerned. Business casual is more relaxed, flip flops are accepted almost everywhere at any time, and tshirts are the norm. I am very happy to be casual most of the time. But then..sometimes only pearls and heels feel right. Generations or geography cannot change that.

Maybe..

Hopeful. The oil has stopped. Let's pray permanently.

Where the land stops is where your troubles seem small.

Honey and summer

Honey and summer just go together. Everything gets a little stickier in the summer, as well as sweet. There are many benefits to honey. It oxygenates the blood, it is full of various vitamins and it just plain good.

My grandfather was a beekeeper. He was highly allergic to bees. So am I, along with my children. But I have always had this fascination with bees and their magic that they spin producing such sweet ends. Maybe because they were a little dangerous. Maybe because it is something I was told "no" to and wasn't supposed to get near. Why is it human nature to be drawn to the taboo?

Bumble bees are not even built to fly. The way they are made up should make it physically impossible to leave the ground. But they do. We can learn so much from tiny bees who are so determined. So this summer I celebrate honey and bees are all things sweet and impossible.

Leave your troubles on the porch

When I was a girl the front porch is where we spent our night. We listened to the cacadas and watched fireflies and listened to Nanny talk about life. This is where I learned about patience, forgiveness, treating others with respect and the importance of family.

Missing from our lives now is the front porch. Porch not needed. But taking a moment to share with our children, grandchildren, friends, siblings on a regular basis is needed. Turn off all things electronic.

Pour some tea and talk about your day. It's necessary.

Jimmy Buffett on the Gulf Coast

Don't miss out on the Jimmy Buffett from the Gulf Coast concert Sunday night, July 11 at 6:00 pm on CMT. We are going down to Landshark Landing to watch.

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A Perfect Day?

There are some days that seem to go like clockwork from the time your feet hit the floor until you say your prayers at night.

While I have few of these days that go without some aggravating "event" that makes me say unlady-like expletives, most days are a matter of state of mind and your view of things from your corner of the pier.

For example, we were blessed with good weather for the Blue Angel Air Show (and the crowds were a good thing to see at our near silent beaches). Had the best steak I have had in a while tonight at Wintzell's and even the thunderstorms that popped up throughout the weekend have not dampered my enthusiasm. They watered my flowers and rinsed off my mom car.

Oil has been the topic of our world here on the Gulf Coast. Other than the usual hurricanes that ravage the coast, we seem to be the type of people that can handle most. Maybe the humidity and the no see-ums have tempered us to the elements. But the oil is a different matter. The unknown..not knowing which businesses will fail due to lost business, or how this will affect our daily life, literally. Our way of life has been changed due to the carelessness of BP. But we are all in this together, and will find a solution, clean up the mess and life will go on for our children and grandchildren. We still have cell phones, electricity and roofs over our heads. We are pretty slow, but can figure out the rest if we are allowed the basics. At the moment the beaches are almost perfect...allowing time for a possible plan to take place to preserve them.

I take this day to thank the maker for my large blended family, my crazy group of friends and my sweet husband. And those gulf shrimp I had tonight need an extra prayer too.